TEACHING PLATFORM

Teaching your dog ‘Platform’ (or station)Animal trainers have been using platforms for years to train a variety of animals such as dolphins, animal performers, horses and even birds and animals in zoos. Originally platforms were used to 'station' an animal during a break in training/performance, but in dog training, the platform is used whilst the dog is on it. A platform is traditionally a raised surface, something a dog can easily hop onto and stand/sit/down on it. Think of a ‘platform’ more as a behaviour than an object.Lots of different objects can be used as a platform i.e. stools, chairs, an old table with some carpet on top, plastic boxes, crates, basically if our dog can hop on it and stay on there, you can use it. In fact, the more objects you can generalize this behaviour to, the better your dog will take to different platforms. Remember to only use an object that is suitable for your dog’s size, is not too high so it’s comfortable for them to hop onto and is non slip. Once taught, a platform is a very solid behaviour, there’s no grey area, as the platform is raised, the dog is either on it, or not - Simple really!

During a training session you obviously need to have your dog’s attention, it is easier to get your dog’s attention when they are still, Still paws = engaged brain.So being on a platform benefits both you and the dog, making training more focused.Essentially a platform is a “go to” place that the dog seeks out and performs a behaviour on. Platforms can also be used to teach your dog to be in a certain position, or go in a certain direction, it has a huge variety of uses, is very versatile and can be used to train an assortment of behaviours, such as;

Training and improving obedience skills – you can utilize the platform in training “wait’ and “Stay”

Training and improving send ways – the dog has the platform to go away to

Training and improving confidence - dogs love to stand on platforms as it makes them taller, which helps increase their confidence

Training and building a better distance “Stay”, even when your back is turned and you are walking around, your dog is more likely to remain in the stay on a platform, than on the ground

Training and improving heel positions - close, heel, front and behind

Training precise body positions - as in musical freestyle etc.

Teaching the dog to work at a distance

Training and improving performing tricks/behaviours at a distance

Teaches the dog a default location (or "home base")

Teaches a dog to go to a mark - useful in animal acting

Teaching reactive/barky dogs to stay calm

Training and improving duration in tricks/behaviours

Training directional signals – sending your dog left/right

Correct platform training will create a big change in your dog’s ability to wait quietly and focus - Still paws = engaged brain – you will find your dog willing to stay quietly on the platform, they will increase their attention span as they learn to focus on you and wait for the next cue. By taking away your dog’s options for movement they will become more relaxed. Dogs tend to have difficulty just being still, if they have a reason for not moving it helps them stay still until released. You can use platforms to give your dog a reason to be still and their mind will engage, it will help your dog control their energy by giving your dog a place to stay.

Training tips for teaching a reliable platform

Add value to the pedestal - The MOST IMPORTANT thing to teach your dog is that a platform has value. If you dog values the platform they will want to willingly spend time on it. You do this by using a high rate of reinforcement while your dog is on the platform (more on that later).

Teach a verbal and visual cue – by teaching your dog both a verbal and visual cue you will make the platform behaviour more flexible,

Send your dog forward to the platform– always send your dog forward to the platform, so ideally have your dog between yourself and the platform and send them away from you to the platform, if you train platform by having the platform between yourself and your dog and call them towards you on to the platform, you will run the risk of your dog always wanting to face you/come towards you and may hinder your send away training – so don’t train ‘toward’ you if you want a reliable send-away.

Add a sense of urgency – you want your dog to be keen to hop on the platform, you can create a sense of urgency by running your dog to the platform during training, by doing this you will end up with a very quick response to your platform cue

Teach a release cue - your dog should only hop off the platform when cued, so it is important to teach a release cue (such as “hop off” or “free”) As well as a release word, you can teach a release visual cue and even a release touch i.e. on back of neck/head/shoulder which is very useful if you are working with multiple dogs, or moving around doing a performance/demonstration

PROOF - Don’t forget to add distance/duration/distractions – also proof by using different platform objects and different surfaces so that your dog will happily stay on a platform whatever the feel. By proofing early on in this behaviour it will make your platform more solid

Get a reliable hop on platform to cue and stay before introducing other tricks/ behaviours – if you try and introduce other behaviours/tricks before you have a steady ‘stay’ on the platform you are trying to add to an inferior or unfinished behaviour

Training methodsThere are a few ways to teach your dog to hop on and stay on a platform, you can shape it (rewarding small steps towards the end behaviour), you can use directed learning (using some cues and gestures), you can use targeting or you can lure into position on platform. I won’t go in to too much detail on each of the methods, I will cover training methods in the newsletters and separate article.Shaping – shaping is a very effective way of teaching platform, when used correctly, shaping leads to fast learning and solid, reliable behaviours. Your dog will become ‘shaping savvy’ the more you use it. It is particularly good way to train if your dog is used to freely offering behaviours. In shaping a platform, you basically wait for your dog to offer the behaviour then reward their efforts, you would start by rewarding any interaction with the platform and then reward successive approximations towards the end behaviour of ‘hop on and stay’. So you would break ‘hop on the platform’ down into even smaller steps, rewarding each step closer to the end goal i.e. one paw on the platform – both front paws on the platform – 4 paws on the platform etc.Luring – luring allows you to manipulate specific movements and reward small increments so is ideal for teaching a hop on the platform. As with shaping you can reward each step closer towards the behaviour you want i.e. one paw on the platform – both front paws on the platform – 4 paws on the platform etc.Directed learning– directed learning utilises what the dog already knows, so you would use some cues and gestures to get the behaviour you want. So if your dog already knows ‘paws up’ you can start by asking for paws up on the platform, you could pat the platform with your hand to encourage your dog to hop on, you could point to the platform if your dog knows directional cues or you could use a ‘wait’ or ‘stay’ while they are on the platform. You can still incorporate shaping into this type of learning by rewarding each step towards the end behaviour.Targeting – targeting is essentially teaching your dog to touch a specific body part to a designated target/location (nose to hand/paws to floor target etc.) You can use targeting to get your dog to hop on the platform by teaching them to place their paws on a specific target and then place that target on the platform.Using a combination – I believe there is nothing wrong at all in using a ‘hybrid’ of training methods, depending on your dog’s abilities. So you could use targeting to get your dog’s paws up on to the platform, then you could use luring to get all 4 paws up, then you could use directed learning to control movement on the platform etc.Whichever training technique you use there are 4 important steps to platform training;

hop on

stay put & add value

perform behaviour (if applicable)

hop off (on release cue)

Because it is beneficial to proof and generalise platform A LOT using lots of different objects as platforms, it’s inevitable that there will be objects your dog may not be comfortable jumping on top of, so it’s important to take time to teach each of those 4 steps.

How to teach PlatformPlatform Training Goal: To send your dog to any platform independently (off lead) and your dog to stand/sit/down etc. quietly on the platform until released.In this written tutorial I will use a combination of directed learning, luring and shaping.First of all you need to decide what you will use for your platform, making sure it is appropriate for your dog and safe (non slip), before you start training make sure your dog is happy to be near the platform. If they are a bit unsure of the platform you can just spend some time making sure your dog is comfortable by rewarding them for being near and calm, getting closer and eventually you could put a treat on the platform for your dog to eat. It may seem time consuming, especially if you just want to get on with training, but you will end up with a more reliable solid ‘platform’ and your dog will be happier to be on the platform if you have took your time.As I have said there are 4 important steps to platform training;

hop on

stay put & add value

perform behaviour (if applicable)

hop off (on release cue)

HOP ONStarting with the ‘hop on’ you can start by rewarding a “Paws Up” on the platform, if your dog already knows “paws up” trick you can ask them for ‘paws up’ and go from there. It is important to point out that ‘how’ your deliver your reinforcer (treat) is VERY important in platform training. I will talk about high rate of reinforcement later but the way in which you give your dog the treat is just as important. You need to feed the treat directly to your dog’s mouth while they are in the position you want to reward. It’s no good tossing the treat on the floor or putting it on the platform if you want your dog to stay still on the platform. The way in which you deliver the treat should aid training not hinder it.

Have your dog beside the platform, if you can get your dog to sit/stand with their front paws quite near to the platform it will make luring easier.

Holding a treat just above your dog’s nose level above the platform, use the treat to lure your dog up to put their paws on the platform

Encourage your dog to put paws up by raising the treat a little higher, so they have to reach up and step on the platform to reach the treat

As soon as your dog puts even one paw on the platform, CLICK + reward by releasing the treat in your hand, so your dog takes the treat directly from your hand

Repeat the luring, encouraging your dog to put both paws up on the platform, CLICK + rewarding each step up

Once your dog is comfortable putting both front paws up on the platform you can begin to ask for all 4 paws on the platform

Continue to use luring but instead of holding the treat above your dog’s nose, hold the treat about an inch from your dog’s nose and move it horizontally/outwards/away from your dog to lure your dog to move onto the platform putting all 4 paws on

Again you can reward smaller increments and CLICK + reward one back paw up/then both back paws up, remember to deliver the treat direct to your dog’s mouth

To create muscle memory of ‘hop on’ - repeat the luring, encouraging your dog to step up with all 4 paws on the platform

As soon as your dog is stepping up with all 4 paws on the platform consistently, you can remove the lure and just use your hand without the treat, then rewarding from your treat pouch

Once you have a reliable ‘hop on’ the platform you can add your ‘hop on’ cue

To add your verbal cue say ‘hop on’ (I use ‘on your spot’ but you can use anything as long as it is an original cue) BEFORE your dog steps up on to the platform, repeat until your dog is stepping up on cue. Get your verbal cue quite solid before adding a separate visual cue

You can add a visual cue (I use a simple point with one finger to the platform) in exactly the same way as step 12 using your visual cue instead of ‘hop on’

If you want to add a visual cue later, after you have taught a verbal cue, use the new cue/old cue protocol. It should look like this … New cue (“HAND SIGNAL”) >> Old cue (“HOP ON”)>> behaviour happens (dog hops on) >> Click and treat for correct response.

Repeat that sequence several times, then pause for a second after giving the new visual cue, then give the old verbal cue. What you are looking for is your dog to offer the ‘hop on’ during the pause between visual then verbal cue. Eventually, your dog will understand that the new visual cue predicts that the old cue will be given and they will “shortcut” to the ‘hop on’ after you give the new visual cue. You MUST CLICK + reward immediately when you your dog responds to the new visual cue, remembering to keep delivering the treat direct to your dog’s mouth

Once your dog starts to respond to the new visual cue, fade out the verbal cue

You can keep switching it around using verbal/visual cues to proof further, making sure your dog knows both cues

Remember to send your dog forward to the platform – always send your dog forward away from you to the platform, so ideally have your dog between yourself and the platform and send them away from you to the platform, if you train platform by having the platform between yourself and your dog and call them towards you on to the platform, you will run the risk of your dog always wanting to face you/come towards you and may hinder your send away training – so don’t train ‘toward’ you if you want a reliable send-away/distance work

Once you have the ’hop on’ on cue, you can add a sense of urgency – you want your dog to be keen to hop on the platform, one way you can create a sense of urgency is by running your dog to the platform during training, by doing this you will end up with a very quick response to your platform cue. Start a few feet away from the platform and your dog between yourself and the platform and as you say your ‘hop on’ cue run with your dog towards the platform, you can also send them away from you forward to the platform, you can hype your dog up by saying ‘ready, steady … ‘hop on’ .. all of which will make your dog’s response to the ‘hop on’ cue quicker and cleaner.

REMEMBER - Set your dog up for success

make it easy for them by not holding the treat too high at first to get their feet onto the platform

CLICK + reward when your dog puts their paws on the platform

Feed the treat directly to your dog’s mouth

If your dog is finding it difficult to step on to the platform, check you are not ‘blocking’ them with your position

Always send your dog forward away from you to the platform

Have patience, especially if your dog is new to these body movements

As I mentioned you can also use purely shaping as an alternative to luring described above. To shape the behaviour you need to click + reward any movement/behaviour at all related to hop on the platform, gradually raising the criteria/what your dog needs to do to get a click + reward until they are reliably hopping on the platform. Add the cue when your dog is reliably getting on the platform following the steps above. RELEASE CUE/FINISHED CUESo now you have ‘hop on’ on cue, you can work on adding a release cue to ‘hop off’ (on release cue)It may seem strange to teach the last step now, but it is important to have a release cue as soon as possible. Having a release cue communicates to your dog the end of a behaviour. If you teach your dog any behaviour that has duration – like down, sit, stand – it’s important to always release your dog afterward. A release cue is a signal to your dog that they can get up/move away after the behaviour is complete. Think how confusing it can be for your dog if ‘sit’ or ‘down’ sometimes means stay down/sitting until I tell you to get up and at other times it means get up whenever you feel like it. A fundamental key to success in dog training is to be consistent and you must be consistent with release cues.If you already have a release cue for your dog, great, you can use that, I would recommend you have a general release cue for most behaviours. You need to use a word that is unique and doesn’t sound like any other cue you use to avoid confusion, an example of some release cues that trainers use are - ‘free’, ‘off’, ‘break’, ‘release’, ‘all done’, personally I use ‘that-ll-do’ and when Bella hears that she knows the trick/behaviour is over but for these training notes I will use ‘break’ as the release word. I wouldn’t recommend you use the word ‘ok’ as it is an everyday word that your dog may hear a lot. If you haven’t yet taught your dog a release cue, once you have taught it for platform work you can carry on using that same release cue in your other training.As well as a release word, you can also teach a release touch - i.e. on the back of neck or shoulder, which can be used instead of a release word, this is particularly useful if you are working with more than one dog, you would teach a release touch in the same way as a release word.It is very important that you are consistent and your dog is allowed only to get off the platform when you give the release cue. If they do get off before they are released, DO NOT say ‘no’ or any other negative, just send them back up on to the platform but do not click + reward for getting back up as you risk creating a chain of hop on/get off/hop on = get treat.Decide what you want your dog’s default position to be on the platform – sit/down/stand etc. – once you have decided on a default position, be consistent in asking for that behaviour on the platform, don’t keep changing it – I use a ‘sit’ as a default position so will use that in the following training notes.

Once you have a reliable ‘hop on’

Ask for a ‘sit’ on the platform – click + reward

Wait a second, then say your release cue ‘break’ as your dog is still in position (the sit)

Then immediately encourage your dog to get off the platform by moving away and encouraging them to follow you

You need to click as your dog gets off, so they know the ‘getting off the platform’ is getting the reward

If your dog is reluctant to get off the platform you can try tossing a treat away from the platform

It is important to say your release cue ‘break’ before your dog moves. It should look like this … say release cue ‘break’ >> then move away/encourage your dog to follow/toss treat >> click and reward for correct response

Repeat in short training sessions until your dog is getting off the platform on your ‘break’ cue

As well as your release word ‘break’, you can also teach a release touch (i.e. on the back of neck or shoulder), You can add a touch release cue in exactly the same way as a verbal cue just using a touch instead of ‘break’ – if you are using a touch cue then be sure it is not something that your dog finds aversive and they are comfortable with the touch

If you want to eventually use both verbal and touch release, you can add a touch cue after you have taught a verbal cue, using the new cue/old cue protocol. It should look like this … New cue (“TOUCH”) >> Old cue (“BREAK”) >> behaviour happens (DOG GETS OFF PLATFORM) >> Click and treat for correct response.

Repeat that sequence several times, then pause for a second after doing the new touch cue, then give the old verbal cue ‘break’. What you are looking for is your dog to offer the ‘get off’ during the pause between visual then verbal cue. Eventually, your dog will understand that the new touch cue predicts that the old ‘break’ cue will be given and they will “shortcut” to the ‘get off’ after you give the new touch cue. You MUST CLICK + reward immediately when you your dog responds to the new touch cue

Once your dog starts to respond to the new touch cue, you can fade out the verbal cue

You can keep switching it around using verbal/touch cues to proof further, making sure your dog knows both cues

If your dog does get off the platform before you give the release cue, DO NOT click and reward for them getting back on the platform as you run the risk of creating a chain of hop on/get off/hop on = get treat, instead just lure them back on to the platform with a treat, ask them to sit and do some release repetitions

You need to be aware of your dog’s body language, anticipate and watch for the smallest movement which indicates they may get off, then just before they move say your release cue then click + reward as they are getting off.

Your dog will learn that the release cue means they have permission to get off/finish/move

Release your dog at variable durations so they are not expecting a release every so many seconds etc.

click as your dog gets off, so they know the ‘getting off the platform’ is getting the reward

anticipate your dog’s body language and watch for the smallest movement which indicates they are about to move/get off

It is up to you to manage opportunities to avoid mistakes

Deliver the treats/reward for getting off, away from the platform

Your release cue needs proofing like any other behaviour, proofing means that your dog will understand that they don’t get up/move no matter what else is happening around them. Proof your release cue by adding distractions like your movement, toys, other dogs, add other words. Release at variable distances too, so they are not expecting a release every time you are x amount feet away and release at variable durations so they not expecting a release after so many seconds etc.I will be doing a separate article all about release cues on more detail, so watch out for that.

STAY PUT & ADD VALUESo now you have ‘hop on’ and ‘hop off’ on cue you can work on - ‘stay put & add value’As I stressed previously, the MOST IMPORTANT thing to teach your dog is that a platform has value. If your dog values the platform they will want to willingly spend time on it.How do you add value? - You add value by using a high rate of reinforcement while your dog is on the platform. The rate of reinforcement is the number of rewards given per amount of time, most references you will read about rate of reinforcement will tell you to aim for between 15 – 30 clicks/rewards per minute for learning simple behaviours, that’s a treat every 2-4 seconds! Sounds a lot right! But here’s a secret … generous trainers get results!No – your dog won’t get fat, NO – your dog won’t always rely on treats … when you are training a new behaviour, you will only be training for a few minutes at a time, so you shouldn’t be stuffing your dog with treats for an hour at a time! You can cut down on your dog’s food, if necessary, or even use their daily meals in training sessions. Also remember that you only need to use a high reinforcement rate in the beginning of training a new behaviour, until the behaviour is learned. Then you switch to a random/variable rate of reinforcement. (I will be doing a separate article on reinforcement soon).Again it is important to remember to deliver your reinforcer (treat) directly to your dog’s mouth while they are in the position you want to reward. The way in which you deliver the treat should aid training not hinder it, so by feeding the treat straight to your dogs mouth while they are sitting still on the platform you are aiding stillness. Teach your dog that a platform has value, because if your dog stays on and they get LOTS of rewards, your dog will want to willingly spend time on it, making it a great training tool.Once your dog is reliably doing ‘hop on’ and ‘hop off’ on cue you can start to teach your dog the platform has value.ADD VALUE

Decide what you want your dog’s default position to be on the platform – sit/down/stand etc. – once you have decided on a default position, be consistent in asking for that behaviour on the platform, don’t keep changing it – I use a ‘sit’ as a default position so will use that in the following training notes.

Once your dog has hopped on to the platform, (at this point you should still be immediately clicking + rewarding for hop on), use a ‘sit’ cue – CLICK + reward as soon as your dog sits, remember to deliver the treat direct to your dog’s mouth to maintain stillness

Staying very close to your dog on the platform (do not add any distance yet), while they are in a sit on the platform do a quick fire/high rate of reinforcement in rapid succession, do that for approx. 10 clicks/treats – giving the treats directly to your dog’s mouth

Then take a few seconds break, if your dog stays on the platform, do another quick fire/high rate of reinforcement in rapid succession, for approx. 10 clicks/treats – giving the treats directly to your dog’s mouth

Repeat steps 3 to 5 several times then take a break, take your dog away from the platform, allow them to play or go outside for a few minutes

Then take your dog back to the platform, wait a few seconds and if your dog hops on the platform by himself … BINGO!! You are starting to add value to the platform, by your dog choosing to be on the platform they are realising that being on there gets the best rewards … Dog sees platform >> thinks ‘oh look, I know when I get on that thing I get lots of treats’ >> ‘if I make a choice to get on that by myself I will get lots of treats – if I get off I will get nothing’

If they don’t hop on the platform by themselves, you just need to do more work and repetitions as above, you will find that eventually your dog will see the platform and automatically just get on.

ADD DURATION

Once your dog has hopped on to the platform, (at this point you should still be immediately clicking + rewarding for hop on), use a ‘sit’ cue – CLICK + reward as soon as your dog sits, remember to deliver the treat direct to your dog’s mouth to maintain stillness

Staying very close to your dog on the platform (do not add any distance yet), while they are in a sit on the platform, (repeating the steps for adding value), do a quick fire/high rate of reinforcement in rapid succession, do that for approx. 10 clicks/treats – giving the treats directly to your dog’s mouth

Then take a break for 2/3 seconds and repeat step 2 three times, with a 2/3 second break in between – remembering to give the treats directly to your dog’s mouth

Then release your dog from the platform with your release cue – Click + reward for correct response when they get off the platform

By now your dog should be making the choice to hop back on to the platform after a break

Repeat the above steps for adding value several times throughout the day/as often as you can with breaks in between, you can start to add duration by increasing the amount of time in between each quick fire session – at first just increase by a couple seconds, then 5 seconds/8 seconds/10 seconds etc.

When you are increasing duration use variable amounts of time, don’t continually increase the amount of time, your dog needs to be successful and also you don’t want them to predict when they will be released from the platform e.i. 5 seconds/10 seconds/3 seconds/8 seconds etc.

You need to be aware of your dog’s body language, anticipate and watch for the smallest movement which might indicate they may get off, then just before they move say your release cue

If you find your dog is finding it difficult to stay on the platform for any length of time, you can also use a "Wait" cue, which will communicate to your dog they need to stay on the platform, I prefer not to use a wait cue but sometimes it does help during the initial learning process.

I would recommend you do several short sessions a day if you can, repeating the steps above, you will find that eventually as soon as your dog sees the platform they will offer to hop on

If you find your dog is getting off the platform frequently then you need to go back a step and reduce the amount of duration you are asking for. Your dog’s body language is your guide, if you have a dog that gets up quickly, that is your feedback that they don’t yet understand what you are teaching them, have less duration before giving your release cue and less time in between treats

When I am training using a quick fire high rate of reinforcement I use lickit stick as it is quick and easy to handle. A lickit stick is a flavoured stick or rollerball that the dog licks as their reward, you can also use tubes of squeezy cheese.

Once your dog is reliably staying on the platform you can start to fade out the clicker but still rewarding intermittently, eventually you can fade out the rewards every time, just rewarding intermittentlyREMEMBER - Set your dog up for success

Stay very close to your dog on the platform – don’t add any distance until you are sure your dog will stay on the platform

you don’t need to overload your dog with more than what you are working on – only add one of the 3 D’s at a time

Use a quick fire/high rate of reinforcement in rapid succession

remember to give the treats directly to your dog’s mouth to aid learning

Be aware of your dog’s body language, anticipate and watch for the smallest movement which might indicate they may get off

ADDING DISTANCEYou want your dog to be able to stay on the platform for as long as you ask them to, no matter how far away you are. Your aim is to be able to move around freely while your dog stays on the platform.

Once your dog has hopped on to the platform, (at this point you should still be immediately clicking + rewarding for hop on), ask your dog to sit/down – whatever they will be comfortable doing – CLICK + reward as soon as your dog sits/down, remember to deliver the treat direct to your dog’s mouth to maintain stillness

Take one step back away from the platform, immediately click and then return to your dog to reward.

After a few successful repetitions of taking one step away, take two steps away from the platform, immediately click and then return to your dog to reward.

Add distance one step at a time, going slowly, it’s important to use your release cue occasionally and reward them for the correct response of getting off the platform

If your dog is struggling to manage the distance, decrease your distance and make sure they have some success

You can add distance slowly one step at a time and you need to be aware of your dog’s body language, anticipate and watch for the smallest movement which might indicate they may get off or they are struggling with the distance

REMEMBER - Set your dog up for success

Move away one step at a time

you don’t need to overload your dog with more than what you are working on – only add one of the 3 D’s at a time

Move back to your dog to reward

remember to give the treats directly to your dog’s mouth to aid learning

Increase distance slowly using variable amounts of steps/distance

Be aware of your dog’s body language, anticipate and watch for the smallest movement which might indicate they may get off

ADDING DISTRACTIONSYou want your dog to be able to stay in position on the platform no matter what the distraction may be. When training it’s important that the distractions are easy to manage, start with some simple distractions, and then build up to higher distractions. Remember to increase the distractions slowly.For the purpose of these training notes I will use an example of using a toy as a distraction but you can use the same method for introducing other distractions ….

Cue your dog to hop on the platform, click + reward.

Show your dog the toy, make sure they know you have it – use a low value toy to start with, then you can build up to a favourite toy once your dog is showing self control

When your dog knows you have the toy, Click + reward if they stay on the platform

At this point just hold the toy, don’t tease your dog with it

Do a few repetitions of Click + reward your dog for staying on the platform

Then you can start to slowly wiggle the toy/move it around – Click + reward your dog for staying on the platform

After a few successful repetitions, move on to squeak the toy - Click + reward your dog for staying on the platform

After a few successful repetitions, you can start to gently toss the toy up in the air - Click + reward your dog for staying on the platform

Again after a few successful repetitions, drop the toy on the floor - Click + reward your dog for staying on the platform

Be aware of your dog’s body language, anticipate and watch for the smallest movement which might indicate they may get off

You can practice adding duration, distractions and distance in your home by asking your dog to stay/rest/lay down on the platform while you are cooking dinner, getting ready or watching TV etc.The end goal for platform work is you want your dogs to be able to stay in position on the platform no matter what the distraction/distance/duration may be.FINALLYRemember that consistency is THE key with any training. If want to continue to see a behaviour from your dog you need to be either training it or maintaining it – or you will lose it.

HAPPY TRAINING!

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